This article originally appeared in the summer 2017 issue of Harker Magazine.
Creativity and storytelling run through the veins of Andrew Shvarts ’03. Much of his childhood was spent dreaming up, jotting down and narrating elaborate stories.
At Harker, Shvarts performed in countless plays and musicals – highlights include sinking his fangs into a fake rat during the production of “Dracula” as well as sliding off of the stage and into the orchestra pit during opening night of the upper school’s first musical revue – and produced an outlandish martial arts film as part of a video and motion graphics class.
“I think on some fundamental level, I view the world through the lens of fiction and narrative,” said Shvarts, who is quick to credit three former Harker English teachers – Stephen Wells, Sylvia Harp and Sharron Mittelstet – with furthering his love of language, literature and composition. “It’s just hard-coded into how I think and who I am.”
An English and Russian double major at Vassar College, he frequently videotaped student films – from comedies to crimes – and workshopped his own creative writing. Following college, where he had enjoyed lazy weekends playing video games with his friends, a job ad for a video game writer practically called his name. The position would entail creating weekly episodic content for Electronic Arts’ “Surviving High School,” thus beginning Shvarts’ foray into the world of young adult (YA) fiction. He would go on to serve as a producer for the video game company before assuming his current post at another, Pixelberry Studios, where he has been working as a designer for the past five years.
While he sees merit in both, the writing of fiction, Shvarts acknowledged, remains quite different from the writing of video games. In his case, most of the games he has written, produced and designed fall under the category of interactive narrative. He essentially develops ways for players to create their own storylines.
“If being a fiction writer is being an artist, being a game writer is being an architect,” he said. “You’re creating a space for someone to move into and make their own.”
Shvarts is celebrating the springtime release of his debut YA novel, “Royal Bastards,” which he describes as “‘Game of Thrones’ meets ‘The Breakfast Club,’” comprising key elements that are characteristically associated with both the Primetime Emmy Award-winning fantasy television series and the quintessential 1980s coming-of-age film.
“I think the book is about that precise moment in adolescence when you discover that your parents aren’t the idols you believed them to be, when you’re caught between a loyalty to the values you were raised with and the new perspectives that come with being exposed to the larger world,” Shvarts said.
The first draft took him roughly seven months to write and two months to edit, with plenty of pacing and pots of coffee along the way.
Contributor Jared Scott Tesler is based in Rochester, N.Y.
This article originally appeared in the summer 2017 issue of Harker Magazine.
Judge John Byron Owens MS ’85 earned his first paycheck, for $180, from Harker in 1985. He rode his bike from Cupertino to campus every day that summer to work as a camp counselor. It was the beginning of a journey distinguished by hard work, intellect and honor.
“No one at Harker is surprised by John’s success,” said Pat Walsh, Owens’ fifth grade teacher. “It’s not just that he’s brilliant, which he is, but that he’s filled with integrity.”
Owens, who attended Harker from grades 3-8, has remained in touch with Walsh. In 2014, Owens even invited Walsh to his swearing-in ceremony as a Circuit Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.
Before being nominated by President Barack Obama, Owens had a successful career as an attorney, served as a clerk for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and graduated first in his class at Stanford Law School. All these successes came with a lot of hard work, one of Owens’ core values, along with honesty and kindness.
“There is no substitute for hard work, especially when you are in high school and college. Hard work now makes the rest of your life much easier,” is advice he has shared with Harker students in the past and regularly shares with his two daughters.
And Owens definitely walks the talk. Last season he coached his eldest daughter’s club basketball team, which made the playoffs. He stressed to the team to work hard at practice but also at home on shooting and dribbling. He realized that a coach cannot ask his players to work hard if he also isn’t willing to put in the time, so he spent hours reviewing game films and statistics, and designed a new offense for the team. They won both playoff games by nearly 20 points.
“So it may seem crazy – a federal judge is spending hours watching youth basketball games – but it was an important lesson for our players and especially my oldest daughter to understand that success only happens through hard work,” said Owens. “It is not fair to have hard-working players led by an unprepared coach.”
Owens has always loved sports and even worked as a marketing assistant for the Golden State Warriors when he was an undergraduate student at the University of California, Berkeley. But his love of the law prevailed. His law career includes serving as an assistant U.S. attorney for both the central and southern districts of California, as well as a partner at Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP.
Owens, a big science fiction fan, was lauded by “Above the Law” for “nerding out.” The legal website referenced Lone Star Security & Video v. City of Los Angeles, where he incorporated “a Monopoly analogy and a reference to ‘The Twilight Zone’ to urge the Supreme Court to reconsider its holdings.” Other opinions have referenced “Game of Thrones,” “Star Trek” and the horror movie “The Thing.”
His lighter, nerdier side often peeks through when he returns to Harker, from sharing his experience as a judge with third graders to discussing honors and ethics with upper school students. He earned the Distinguished Alumni Award in 2007 and serves on Harker’s Board of Trustees.
“He is well-respected regardless of his role on campus,” said Sarah Leonard, Owens’ third grade teacher and now primary division head. “He has a wonderful way with the third grade students, really driving home his message about hard work, determination, setting goals and perseverance, but he does so in a manner that captures the children’s attention and holds them almost spellbound.“
Owens and his family live in San Diego. In their free time, they enjoy going to the boxing gym on Saturday mornings, where they hit the bags while the youngest takes karate. A perfect day would include a 5-mile run for Owens, followed by a relaxing afternoon and watching the Warriors play in the evening (he’s still a big fan).
Owens values time with his family and, when asked what his proudest accomplishment was, he replied, “That’s easy – my two girls. They both learned at an early age from my wife and me that success in life – academics, sports, the arts – requires hard work.”
Contributor Vikki Bowes-Mok is also the executive director of the community nonprofit Compass Collective.
The Eagle football team executed another dominating performance Friday as it defeated visiting Cupertino 35-0 in front of a packed Davis Field crowd. Dominic Cea, grade 12, connected on two field goals and hit his three extra points; Nate Kelly, grade 12, rushed for a touchdown and passed another to Floyd Gordon, grade 12; Aaron Smith, grade 11, rushed for 160 yards and two touchdowns; and the Harker defense once again played huge! Check out highlights from 49ers Cal-Hi Sports starting at 3:58: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5NOhVhkPss
Next up for the 2-0 Eagles is a trip to Santa Clara High this Friday.
Girls Golf
The girls golf team opened its season last week with a 64-stroke win over Notre Dame San Jose. Katherine Zhu, grade 12, led all golfers with a 35, followed closely by Katelyn Vo, grade 10, and Natalie Vo, grade 9. The Eagles travel to San Mateo on Tuesday to compete in the Helen Lengfeld Memorial Tournament, followed by a date with Menlo on Wednesday.
Last month, Zhu traveled to China where she competed in the China LPGA Beijing Heritage Tournament. This was Zhu’s first professional golf tournament as an amateur and she was the only American golfer in the field. After shooting 72-76-74 over the three-day event, Zhu ended in a tie for 41st out of 65 golfers. Congrats, Katherine!
Cross Country
The cross country team took on runners from St. Francis, Palo Alto and Gunn last week, in runs by class. The top Harker runners were seniors Gloria Guo and Peter Connors; juniors Ryan Adolf and Lilia Gonzales; sophomores Rishi Dange and Annabelle Ju; and freshmen Anna Weirich and Arya Maheshwari, with Weirich finishing first overall among freshman. The runners travel to San Francisco this Saturday for the Lowell Invitational.
Girls Volleyball
Last week, the girls volleyball team defeated Lynbrook in four games, led by a 10-kill performance from Lauren Napier, grade 12. Later in the week, Harker defeated Westmont in three games to bring its season record to 4-4. Check out highlights from the Lynbrook game on 49ers Cal-Hi Sports starting at 34:16: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5NOhVhkPss
Next up, the Eagles travel to Saratoga on Tuesday and host Valley Christian on Thursday.
Girls Water Polo
The girls water polo team opens its season on Tuesday as it hosts Santa Clara before traveling to Milpitas on Thursday.
Boys Water Polo
The boys water polo team hosts Los Gatos Tuesday at the Singh Aquatic Center and travels to Gunn High on Thursday.
Girls Tennis
The girls tennis team opens up its 2017 season this weekend in the Central Valley by competing in the prestigious California Tennis Classic.
Harker Recognized by CCS
CCS recently recognized The Harker School Athletic program with a Sportsmanship Citation for having zero sportsmanship infractions for the 2016-17 school year. Way to go Eagles!
Last week, upper school technical theater teacher Brian Larsen and his Re-Create Reading group enjoyed a visit from Harker alumnus Andrew Shvarts ’03, who discussed his latest work, “The Royal Bastards.”
“Andrew was a great speaker. We discussed themes within the book, character development, the business of getting published as an author and what may lie ahead in his series,” Larsen said. “The kids definitely enjoyed the book and shared their favorite characters and parts of the story.”
Gargeya is one of only 20 students nationwide to recieve the award; he will use it toward his education at Stanford University. Gargeya earned several awards for the development while at Harker, including a first prize in the RRI physical science and engineering category at the 2016 Synopsys Championships. He was a semifinalist in the 2016 Siemens Competition and a regional finalist in the international Google Science Fair 2016. Here is an article about that accomplishment from the Merc: http://www.mercurynews.com/2016/08/10/saratoga-harker-senior-a-google-science-fair-finalist/)
In his official bio, Gargeya had some nice things to say about his time at Harker:
“Rishab attributes his time at The Harker School for having given him an amazing opportunity to push himself in a highly academic environment. Rishab has been fortunate to have worked with many intellectually driven people throughout his high school career, including his science teacher Mr. Chris Spenner, who has been very influential in shaping his research.”
Read Gargeya’s full bio here: http://www.davidsongifted.org/Fellows-Scholarship/2017-Davidson-Fellows/Rishab-Gargeya
Harker students competed in various events over the summer and two attended the 2017 USA Fencing National Championships in Salt Lake City in July.
Nerine Uyanik, grade 10, took a pair of top medals in all-ages events. Her first event was fencing in Division II women’s foil (fencers must be rated C or lower; the scale runs from A, at the top, to E, and U for unclassified), against 147 other women of all ages. Uyanik took the silver medal, improving her rating from a “D” to a highly sought after “B.” She won most elimination bouts decisively, 15-7, 15-9, 7-6 (tough one!), 15-7 and 5-4 (another tough one!). Then a bit of luck, her opponent in the semifinal withdrew, leaving Uyanik fighting in the final, where she succumbed 12-4.
The next day, Uyanik improved on her win to take top honors, the gold medal, in Division III (fencers, age 13 and up, rated D and lower, but Uyanik qualified as a D so was able to fence). In the field of 140 fencers, Uyanik won five out of six pool bouts, had a bye in the first elimination round, then took off, winning 15-5, 15-11, 9-8, 14-12, and, finally, 15-9.
Three days later, Uyanik fenced in the highly competitive Y-14 women’s foil category, and finished No. 59 out of 219 entries. She is ranked No. 54 in the nation in the Y-14 category. Division II and III categories are not nationally ranked.
Meanwhile, Jerrica Liao, grade 12, an A-rated fencer, competed in two tough events, taking 78th out of 185 fencers in junior women’s foil (up to age 19), where she started off winning four out of six pool bouts, earning a bye in the first elimination round, but losing in round two to the eventual 16th place winner.
Two days later, Liao finished her season fencing in Division I (which also requires qualification) among 96 competitors, where Olympians qualify. She finished 78th, a very respectable finish considering the hundreds of fencers who didn’t even qualify for the event. Liao is ranked 66th in the nation in junior women’s foil and 94th in the nation in senior women’s foil. Please congratulate these hard-working swordswomen when you see them!
This year’s National Championships, held July 1-10 at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, hosted more than 4,000 fencers from across the United States who competed in more than 80 events.
Upper school students welcomed the 2017-18 school year on Friday morning with the annual matriculation ceremony. Students filled the upper school quad, which was renovated over the summer. As with previous ceremonies, grade 9 students arrived last, greeted by the enthusiastic applause of students in grades 10-12.
Shortly after members of the Class of 2021 took their seats, new Head of School Brian Yager gave his historic first opening remarks at a Harker matriculation ceremony. He welcomed this year’s seniors into their new roles as student leaders, noting the opportunity “for you to make the most of your own journey while also inspiring and preparing those who will follow you to do the same.” He advised the incoming ninth graders to “enjoy and embrace the process, and look to the students in the grades above you for guidance and inspiration.”
Per tradition, upper school division head Butch Keller also spoke, delivering one of his favorite adages: “It’s not the situation that’s important. It’s the reaction that’s everything.” To illustrate his point, he offered examples of people he had read about over the summer. The first was Jay Williams, a promising former NBA player who suffered a career-ending injury and subsequent drug addiction but eventually maneuvered into a career as an analyst at ESPN. Another was Craig Sager, the legendary sportscaster who chose to fight leukemia rather than succumb to it. Even though Sager’s illness returned, resulting in his death in 2016, his decision to persevere left Keller “humbled.” These stories, Keller felt, also demonstrated virtues of kindness, compassion and empathy he hoped the students would carry with them through the coming year.
ASB president Jimmy Lin, grade 12, welcomed the seniors with a lesson on learning how to get comfortable with trying new things. To illustrate, he shared a story about a visit to Google with his friends. While there, he recalled, the discussion turned to grabbing a few bikes that Google makes available to its employees and riding them to get lunch. It was then that Lin made a confession to his friends: He had never learned to ride a bike. Deciding it was time to learn, “I finally had to swallow my pride and ask my friends to teach me.” After spending time practicing in the Google employee parking lot, Lin finally was able to make the two-block ride to the local eatery. “It was a learning moment that came from trusting my friends to help me embrace this hurdle,” Lin said. “Even though it came 10 years late.” He hoped his story would encourage the incoming freshmen to embrace new challenges, knowing they had their fellow students to help them.
As always, entertainment was a key part of the ceremony, which featured performances by the upper school women’s choir Cantilena, directed by Susan Nace, and The Harker String Quartet, directed by Chris Florio. The ceremonies concluded with the annual “Freshman 101” series of comedy skits, put on by the Student Council and Honor Council, which introduced the grade 9 students to various aspects of school life in a fun and light-hearted manner.
The grand opening of Harker’s new athletic center drew more than 600 people Friday evening, as members of the Harker community and local media arrived to get an early look at the feature-rich facility.
Many at the event were new visitors, getting a first-time look at the 33,000-square-foot facility’s spectacular gym floor. Measuring 12,000 square feet, the floor is designed to allow two games to be played simultaneously and is situated 14 feet below ground to facilitate temperature control and reduce the building’s profile. The building’s HydroWorx underwater treadmill – the same kind used by orthopedic hospitals and NFL teams – is the first at any U.S. high school. It is situated alongside a HydroWorx 300 therapy pool and Grimm Scientific cryotherm pool.
“It’s the best of everything. It’s gorgeous, the lockers, the training room facilities, top of the line,” said Joe Cea, father of Dominic Cea, grade 12, adding that he “can’t wait to watch the games.”
In addition to its many benefits for Harker athletes and athletic faculty, the building also provides an ideal venue for assemblies and contains a large screen for streaming events. The spectator experience was also crucial to its design, with bleachers situated to enable a great line of sight to the action on the gym floor, a spacious promenade and an easily accessible snack bar. In keeping with Harker’s energy-conscious approach to designing and constructing new facilities, 25 percent of the electricity to both the athletic center and the Rothschild Performing Arts Center (opening in 2018) will be provided by a 140-kilowatt solar array.
“You really see the effort and the vision behind the whole gym,” said Simar Mangat ’13, one of many alumni in attendance. “To see the whole community here, I think there’s a lot of spirit that’s both in the walls of the building and in the people that are here.”
Attendees showed up in the early evening and enjoyed pizza and hot dogs while waiting for the gym to open to visitors. When the time came to open the building at about 7 p.m., ribbons at the entrance were cut by Harker’s Board of Trustees, along with the leaders of the construction effort, and the captains of the boys and girls basketball and volleyball teams. Throngs of people then walked through the entrance and eventually took their seats at the bleachers. Board of Trustees chair and former head of school Diana Nichols then joined faculty, donors and administrators on the gym floor, offering them many thanks for their hard work that made construction of the building possible.
Theresa “Smitty” Smith, longtime volleyball coach and lower and middle school athletic director, later stood on the court, flanked by members of the Nichols family and the upper school girls volleyball team. After Smith delivered a heartfelt dedication to former president Howard Nichols, the members of the volleyball team revealed that the 12,000-square-foot court had been named in Howard’s honor. The Nichols’ grandchildren then had the honor of being the first to dribble basketballs across the length of the court.
Harker facility director Mike Bassoni also had the chance to speak, giving the many in attendance a brief breakdown of the gym’s features while the girls volleyball team set up on the court. The team then played a practice game to the crowd’s delight.
“It is truly amazing, and I’m so glad that we came out as alumni,” said Sumit Minocha ’13. “Everybody seems so happy, I can really just sense the Harker spirit skyrocketing.”
The girls volleyball team made history as it played the first official game in the new gym. Unfortunately, Branham High defeated the Eagles in three hard-fought games. Then over the weekend, Harker went 1-3 at the Milpitas Spikefest with the team’s sole win coming against Homestead. This week, the Eagles host Lynbrook on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. and Westmont on Thursday at 6:15 p.m.
Football
The Harker football team got off to a fast start as it cruised to a 77-6 win over James Lick on Friday night. Among the many highlights was a defense that allowed only 55 yards and scored three touchdowns and an offensive line that allowed zero sacks and led the way for 171 rushing yards. Individually, Anthony Contreras, grade 12, had a kickoff return touchdown, a receiving touchdown and an interception return touchdown, and Nate Kelly, grade 12, rushed for a touchdown and threw three touchdown passes, two to Floyd Gordon, grade 12. This week, the Eagles host Cupertino High at Davis Field at 7 p.m.
Boys Water Polo
The boys water polo team started the season on the right note as it took third place at the Wilcox Tournament over the weekend. Highlights included a 23-11 win over Carlmont and a 9-7 win over Santa Teresa in the third-place game. Next Tuesday, the Eagles open up league play as they host Los Gatos at 4 p.m.
Girls Golf
The girls golf team opens its season on Tuesday against Notre Dame San Jose at Los Lagos Golf Course.
Girls Tennis
The girls tennis team opens its 2017 season in the Central Valley, competing in the prestigious California Tennis Classic. Last year, the Eagles went 5-0 over the two-day tournament and finished with the Division 6 championship.
Cross Country
The cross country team will be off and running on Sept. 9 as it starts the season at the Lowell Invitational.
Girls Water Polo
The girls water polo team opens its season next Tuesday as it hosts Santa Clara High at 6:15 p.m. at the Singh Aquatic Center.
In June and July, rising senior Lizzy Schick went on a 25-day European tennis trip with 12 other high school students from across the United States and three coaches from around the world. The 13 high schoolers were scheduled to play in five tournaments in three cities (Amsterdam, Barcelona and Prague) and train for two to six hours each day on clay courts.
The group started its journey just outside of Amsterdam in a small town called Hilversum, where they learned to play on clay courts (a first for most of the players). In the Tulip Open, the team’s first tournament, Schick competed in both singles and doubles, and won the doubles tournament with her partner, Katie Wolber, a senior from Michigan. While in Amsterdam, the team was fortunate to view the beautiful canals, and visit both the Rijksmuseum art and history museum and Anne Frank’s house.
After the first week in Amsterdam, the team traveled to Barcelona, where Schick competed in her first professional tournament, held at a Spanish national training center. While in Barcelona the players visited the famous market and La Sagrada Familia, a large church that has been under construction since 1882.
During the last week and a half of the trip, the team traveled from Barcelona to Prague where it competed in three tournaments in eight days. Schick was a doubles finalist in the first tournament, and both a singles and doubles finalist in the last tournament. The castle in Prague, John Lennon’s wall, the Charles Bridge, and the Jewish Quarter were among the sights the players toured before leaving the city.
This trip was an exceptional training and learning experience both on and off the court, and helped teach Schick many life skills necessary for her not-so-distant college life. An added bonus of the trip was the special insight Schick received about Amsterdam and Prague, prior to starting her senior year elective history and literature courses.